Cal falls 41-17 to Washington

SEATTLE - The good news for Cal: It appeared that no key players got hurt for the second straight game. The bad news for the Bears: They still can’t put together a full game on either side of the ball.

“It feels similar, frustrating,” head coach Sonny Dykes said following the game. “We certainly don’t ever want to get used to losing. They all sting badly.”

Huskies running back Bishop Sankey rushed for a career-high 241 yards and two touchdowns and Keith Price threw for 376 yards and two touchdowns against a porous Bears’ defense. Cal (1-7, 0-5 Pac-12) entered the game as the nation’s worst pass defense, but they also looked like the worst rush defense as Sankey averaged 8.9 yards per carry.

“He’s a really good running back,” Dykes said of Sankey. “He runs tough.”

After forcing a punt on the opening possession, Washington (5-3, 2-3) set the tone early. Price orchestrated an 11-play, 97-yard drive that ended with a 3-yard touchdown run from Sankey.

The Bears struggled on offense just as much as they did on defense. They punted on their first four possessions and finished the first quarter down 17-0.

“We just couldn’t get anything going on offense,” Dykes said.

Jared Goff, who spent the majority of the week in a reopened quarterback competition with backup Zach Kline, was unable to find a rhythm due to constant pressure behind a new-look offensive line with two new starters. He threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Chris Harper with 12:48 left in the second quarter, but Cal was forced to punt on its next five possessions.

“We just need to execute,” said Goff, who was sacked five times. “We didn’t do a good job of that tonight.”

The Bears forced four straight punts themselves, but Sankey broke free for a 59-yard touchdown with 1:08 remaining in second quarter and Cal entered the half with a 24-7 deficit.

“We have great glimpses of us playing really good football,” linebacker Khairi Fortt said of the four consecutive forced punts, the most in a row by the Bears this season.

At halftime, the Huskies honored Don James, their legendary former coach who died at the age of 80 last Sunday after battling pancreatic cancer.

The Washington marching band performed a tribute to James during the intermission while a memorial video aired and several former players took the field. Both teams sported helmet decals that read “DJ” to pay homage to a man known as the “Dawgfather.”

After the sentimental halftime ceremony, the Huskies didn’t lose a beat.

Washington opened the third quarter by driving 80 yards in 2 minutes and 10 seconds, scoring on a 47-yard pass from Price to Jaydon Mickens.

After three unsuccessful Cal possessions, including a failed fake field-goal attempt, Price scored on a 1-yard quarterback keeper with 4:03 left in the third quarter to bring the Huskies’ lead to 38-7.

The teams traded fourth-quarter field goals, and Bears running back Khalfani Muhammad broke loose for a 73-yard touchdown run with 5:06 remaining in what was the game’s final score.

Goff finished with 336 passing yards and a touchdown, but averaged just 6.2 yards per attempt. Perhaps one bright spot for the true freshman was that he did not turn the ball over.

“That’s one thing that I’ve been working on,” said Goff, who had 13 turnovers entering the game.

Before Muhammad’s touchdown, the Bears were averaging just 2.0 yards per rush.

“Our inability to get much of a running game going has continued to bite us,” Dykes said.

Despite another loss, Dykes was pleased with the effort of his players.

“I thought our whole team battled,” he said. “I wish the outcome was better, but our kids care about each other, and I’m really proud of them for the kind of people they are and the way they keep battling. But I’m ready to win football games, and they are, too. We’re all frustrated.”

Added Goff:

“I see definite improvement. It’s hard to imagine, but I think we’re really coming together as a team through all this pain and struggle.”